From the New York Times – Japan’s Crisis of the Mind

“Japan’s ability to imitate outside models was mistaken for progress. But if progress is defined by pursuing a vision of a desirable future, then the Japanese never progressed.”

“What we had was a concept of order and placement, which is essentially stasis,” says Masaru Tamamoto. Read the full article here.

It’s a grim tale in many ways but fascinating And no-one who has followed Japan’s economic and political fortunes over the past decade can’t but help notice that the country was sleep-walking into a technology-assisted future that nobody could afford, not even the Japanese.

What the above analysis means for Japanese shipping and trade is just as worrying because if the country has lost forever its ability to be innovative in technology and communications then its future is far from clear – long, slow decline, pre-figuring America’s or new role as client state of the new China?

I’m obliged to the Browser and its new service RealInterest for the link to this article published in the New York Times.